


Lockdown 2.0 - 30 days writing challenge

by nameless_whisper



Category: Original Work
Genre: #writerslife, 2020, 30 day writing challenge, Anxiety, BBC, Bad at tagging, Bars and Pubs, COVID-19, Christmas, Coffee Shops, Crimes & Criminals, Doctor Who References, Dreams, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Harry Potter References, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Late Night Conversations, London, Marriage Proposal, Moving, New Year's Eve, One Word Prompts, Quarantine, Shadowhunters references, The Year that Wasn't, Trials, bored in quarantine, crossposting, i'm not even sorry, instagram story challenge, let's make the bored in quarantine tag a trend, lockdown - Freeform, my mind is a messy place, why would anyone look up these tags anyway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:07:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 4,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27505813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nameless_whisper/pseuds/nameless_whisper
Summary: So it's lockdown again in my country and I've started this 30 day writing challenge on instagram, lying myself a perfect life.((I suggest you select *entire work* at the top.))
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Male Character
Kudos: 2





	1. Day 1 - frost

It's been three months since she moved to the city of her dreams, but she still felt chills running down her spine every time she left the flat to head to work. Today was no different. She straightened her plaid scarf as she walked down Berkeley street to get to the underground station. Late November weather in London was nothing like they had back home; she smudged a single teardrop on her face. As she reached Green Park, she stopped for a to-go before crossing Piccadilly. She had a good quarter-hour to spare. Sipping her usual flat white, she walked through the park entrance across the Ritz and absent-mindedly stared at the frosty grass beneath her feet. The clouds seemed like it was going to snow later that day.


	2. Day 2 - sunlight

It was a long and lonely Friday night after a long and lonely week. She had a feeling that it was never going to end. All the high school drama that had happened the previous days was just too much for her mind to process. All she craved was being cosily wrapped in a fluffy blanket by her sweetheart's side with a mug of hot chocolate, but she ran out of milk, and didn't have a sweetheart anyway, so it felt like a lost cause. Tossing and turning in her bed, she finally figured she was supposed to give up the mental self-destruction if she wanted her life to get better. She opened her eyes with a deep sigh just in time to see the first rays of the rising sun hit the floor through the curtains. The world was prettier in sunlight anyway.


	3. Day 3 - laughter

She didn't take it well when they transferred her from Victoria to Blackfriars. First because she lived one stop away from the previous place, but mainly because she knew it was going to drive her crazy. Upon receiving the papers in the Victoria shop, she was tempted to take the bus to Fleet street but chose to get there fast, hoping they would send her home for the rest of the day. She was right, after getting the paperwork done, she got her new schedule and she could go. Walking down the street, her legs took her to the riverbank and she couldn't keep her grin at the sight. She took out her phone and dialled her friend's number. When she answered the call, she cried out "you can have one bloody guess where I'll be working from tomorrow" and without having to say it out loud, they shared a good laugh. Bloody bridge.


	4. Day 4 - running

It was a really bad idea, she thought to herself as she stepped on the path. Just a round in Hyde Park, she swore reluctantly; why would she change her mind now, already being there anyway? Having a pair of running shoes was already weird though, let alone actually putting them on and using them for their original purpose. The round around Hyde Park lead to passing by Westminster, crossing the bridge and heading east on the South Bank. When she reached Blackfriars bridge and jogged behind The Founder's Arms pub, she recalled the memory of that one time when some race took place in the city and she called after the joggers asking if they were chased by a Dalek; back in those days she couldn't understand why anyone would run if they weren't chased. Then again, here she was now, doing the same thing, taking the same route, actually enjoying it. Funny how the tables have turned.


	5. Day 5 - teasing

There was this guy at work that she liked. He was just as weird as her and they got along very well since her first day there. One day after work they decided to grab a beer at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese. They ordered at the counter and sat down at the back of the place, having a small talk about the weather and discussing the latest film they went to see together the previous weekend. About twenty minutes in the conversation, she casually brought up the topic that was destined to end in a disaster. She told him about the novel she was writing, the characters, the main plot and many side plots, and cautiously mentioned that the very first scene of chapter one actually plays out in that pub. He was looking at her with a curious face the whole time she was talking, and when she got to the part where she would've accidentally spoiled the end of the story, she shut up so abruptly that he couldn't hide his gasp.  
'You evil woman' he blurted out 'stop bloody teasing me!'


	6. Day 6 - water

All the times she decided to check out that floating bookshop, something came up. It was a sunny November Saturday when she had time to finally pay a visit to the eclectic shop in King’s Cross. She dressed quickly after breakfast, considering a walk there, but the weather was chilly despite the sunshine, so she took the underground instead. Upon arrival at King's Cross station, she ran into a friend from back home and the two grabbed a coffee and agreed to meet up later in the evening for a drink and to catch up. She got to the shop in a light mood, and it just got better when she almost immediately found a very old edition of The Picture of Dorian Gray. She paid for the book after some mindless browsing and walked out of the shop, staring at the water for a minute before getting back to the station and heading home. It was a good day, not even close to an end.


	7. Day 7 - leather

A trip to Camden Market after payday wouldn’t hurt, would it? She snorted. Of course it was a bad idea, but it was meant to happen anyway. She just had to go back and get that coat. Wondering how she was supposed to get rid of the urge of spending half of her salary right on the spot, she passed the canal and stopped by the mac’n’cheese place she knew from years ago but hardly ever had the time to try again. Her stomach filled with the warm food and her soul with the warm feeling, she headed up to the shop where she found the long black coat she was looking for for ages. She found one last piece of her size and tried it on; the ankle-length black leather coat fit perfectly, she didn’t hesitate for one second, paid for it and put it on immediately, sauntering down the street like a queen.


	8. Day 8 - overwhelm

It was a warm and sunny day in London when she moved. Upon arrival at Luton Airport, she hadn't processed the event yet, she just casually bought a coffee at Pret and smoked before catching the transfer bus to the city centre. All she had on her was a backpack with the essentials, it didn’t really feel like moving at all. Just like another short trip, she thought to herself while sitting on the bus, nothing like she hasn’t done before. She got off at Marble Arch; she was supposed to meet her new landlord near Berkeley Square in an hour so she decided to walk. She got there early; when the elderly lady arrived, she was cheerful and nice, talking all the way to the flat. She explained everything, then gave her the keys and said her goodbye with a smile she would give to her own grandchildren. Left alone in the small studio flat with nothing but her almost empty backpack, she was overwhelmed with the feeling of coming home.


	9. Day 9 - allergies

It's been months since she moved to London but with all the things to do around the flat and working full time she barely had the time to meet her friends. It was almost Christmas and she got this weird feeling; it wasn't really homesickness, but it was in a way, she couldn't explain. She figured spent a lot of time on the phone with her family but ignored her friends that lived in the same city. She reached out and they met in a cosy restaurant in Soho that served all kinds of dishes from back home. They had a lovely dinner together, she went home happy at the end of the evening, but she had trouble falling asleep as her stomach was full and her body was aching. It was after midnight when she couldn't take it anymore, she got out of bed and went to the bathroom. As she looked in the mirror, she couldn't decide if she should laugh or cry. Stupid, stupid girl, somehow managed to eat something that she shouldn't have, her face was all red and itchy; bloody allergy.


	10. Day 10 - dance

Several of her friends came to visit her for the weekend, and she offered them all to stay at her place. Her small living room was full of rugs, blankets, throws and pillows, it all looked like a child's fort on a sleepover. They agreed on going dancing and were now looking for a place that matched all their expectations. Their choice fell on The Loop Bar, a fancy club in Soho. All dolled up, the girls left the flat and headed up north to get to the place, each with a bottle of cider in their hand, singing along to some songs playing on one’s phone. Partying in London has never felt more tempting.


	11. Day 11 - stranger

She was standing at the counter in the small Soho bar, sipping her usual red berries Bulmers, when the guy walked up to her. She glanced up at him, smirking at the thought of what was going to happen next. The man took out a chair and sat down beside her, looking at her like he was looking at a stray animal.  
‘What’ she huffed, annoyed.  
‘You look troubled’ said the man, his Scottish accent made her smirk even more.  
‘You have no idea’ she noted slowly. ‘Although if you don’t have anything to tell me, I’d rather you left me alone.’  
‘Sassy much, are we?’ he grinned and she got even more annoyed than before.  
‘I reckon nobody asked your opinion, stranger. Leave me be, for your own good.’

This went on for another twenty minutes before she eventually agreed on meeting him again the next day. Charming. Pathetic, but charming nevertheless.


	12. Day 12 - hope

She woke up to her phone ringing. Not even knowing where she was, she answered in a sleepy voice but woke up immediately when the caller introduced herself as an office assistant at BBC. The lady asked her to go in for an interview - to a job she never applied for. She agreed sheepishly and when they hung up, she contemplated the situation. What exactly has happened there? When she couldn’t find an explanation, she just stared at the notepad she used to quickly jot the address down during the call. That’s a chance she couldn’t afford not to take. She always hoped for this day to come… and it did without her moving a finger. Be it the angels or the demons, she didn’t care; it didn’t really matter.


	13. Day 13 - new

Christmas was coming up next week and while originally she was planning to go back home for the holidays, she couldn’t afford that luxury now, having accepted the new job. It was still weird to walk through the revolving doors of the huge art deco building every morning, but it seemed so right she never questioned it for one second. No more late night shifts behind the counter, no more overtime, no more last minute shift changes.. Instead, she finished at six latest, and had time to get things done before going out for the night. She adored her new life, and if she wanted to be honest, she didn’t really mind not being able to go home.


	14. Day 14 - time

It was a calm day, she was sitting behind her desk in the office, having no task assigned for the moment, so she took out her notepad from her drawer - she still couldn’t believe she had her own drawer -, and started working on her script draft. Although her job had nothing to do with writing, she preferred thinking of it as ‘yet’ and kept writing anyway. She had all the time in the world for that after all.


	15. Day 15 - fear

She almost got a panic attack when the man walked past her desk in the morning. He was her role model, her idol, everything she ever wanted to be.. She had been waiting for this moment to come and now that it was there, she didn't know how to react. She’s been internally screaming all day, and freaked out when the man called for her. She knew it was going to be for something mundane but fear filled her mind as she knocked on his door. The man was obviously angry with someone, but the way she looked at her when she entered his office made sure he wasn't one to let his anger take over. She could barely put a full sentence together. Funny little thing, fear is, she thought later, when she was in the office kitchen, to make tea for the man she adored so much. He asked her nicely, acknowledging it wasn't her role to serve him, explaining why he was asking for it anyway. She walked back to his office with a tray in her hand and a smile on her face. He thanked her and asked her schedule for the week, in case he needed her again, and while he was clearly joking, she offered her assistance in anything, and she emphasised the anything, knowing he wouldn't misinterpret the offer. Now that was her one dream coming true.


	16. Day 16 - pen

She woke up late on the 24th of December. She got the day off for some reason, although she did not ask for it, but she didn’t mind. She phoned home before noon, wished them a merry Christmas, then got out of bed and dressed for a walk. She didn’t plan to wander too far, but soon found herself in front of The Quill, the prettiest stationery shop in London. She entered cautiously, knowing she could spend all the money in the world in such a shop, and almost immediately regretted doing so, as she stumbled upon the prettiest high-quality fountain pens she’s ever seen for an affordable price. She chose one and also stocked up on cartridges of different colours. She knew it was going to cost a lot, but it’s Christmas only once a year.


	17. Day 17 - secret

It was Boxing day, and for the first time since she moved, she didn’t have anything to do at all. It’s been snowing since last night, the city looked really pretty; although she was more of an autumn child, she felt a sudden urge to go out. Dressed all warm and cosy, she left the flat and stopped by the Pret at Berkeley square for an early brunch. The boy behind the counter greeted her cheerfully, they started together at the Victoria shop a couple months before. She didn't even have to order, the boy was already making her flat white by the time she collected her sandwich and fruits. When she reached for her purse, the boy waved no and offered the order on the house, although he whispered ‘let this be our secret’.


	18. Day 18 - illness

She was out shopping for New Year’s Eve, when she got a call. It was her landlord’s grandson calling to inform her that Mrs Jones’ cancer renewed. Her first instinct was to ask about the lady, she grew to love her so much, she knew she would be devastated if anything happened to her. After David had reassured her that Mrs Jones was alright, she thought about asking what this meant for her, but she decided it would be very inappropriate. She didn’t have to ask though, the man brought it up himself, stating that she didn’t have to move out, nay she could actually stay with periodic tenancy. She thanked him and wished all the best for Mrs Jones before hanging up.


	19. Day 19 - sleep

It was New Year’s Eve and she had planned to go out to Trafalgar square and celebrate with the crowd - a plan she’d had in mind for years - , but when she woke up around noon, she didn’t feel like going anywhere. She got out of bed anyway, took a shower and put some makeup on, made her hair and dressed up nicely, then took a few pictures and recorded some videos to send out later in the evening. When she was done, she went down to Pret and grabbed her usual take-away dinner, then undressed and removed her makeup right when she got home. She climbed back to bed and went to sleep at around six; woke up at ten to send out her greetings to family and closest friends, and slept until seven in the morning.


	20. Day 20 - alarm

She was sitting in the Greyfriars church garden, people-watching. It was suspiciously quiet, no noise of the cars passing by, not one bird chirping, not one person talking on the phone. She started to feel the silence in her bones, cold, lurking, painful. A bus passed by towards St Paul’s, but no sound of the engine nor of the tires screeching; that’s when she’d become anxious. To test her theory, she put on a song from Spotify, it was playing, but she couldn’t hear, although she made sure the volume was the highest. Has she gone deaf? She looked around to check if the people around were staring, but nobody batted an eye. It was downright scary. Suddenly, an ethereal voice was heard, as if it came from Heaven and Hell. Before she could decipher what it said, her alarm brought her back to reality.


	21. Day 21 - uncomfortable

One week into the new year, David called her again about the tenancy modification. He asked if he could come over for the paperwork on a Saturday afternoon, and when she agreed, he almost immediately rang the doorbell. She found it weird and a little creepy, but didn’t bring it up. The man acted in the flat like he lived there. Being the grandson of the landlord gave him some rights, she knew that, but when he started to reorganise her belongings in the bathroom, she started to feel really uncomfortable. They reviewed the conditions and added some extra she didn’t think she would need before, and when they finished, David put the papers back in his bag, without letting her sign it. To check with his accountant, he said with a smile that felt more like a predator’s grin, but she only figured that out an hour after he left.


	22. Day 22 - spellbound

Incoming call - Alexander. She had to think for a second before she remembered it was the annoying but cute Scottish guy from the bar a couple months ago ; she didn’t show up on their not-really-a-date the next day thanks to a colleague calling in sick and therefore having to work night shift, so he dropped by the coffee shop and waited for her to finish. He walked her home and she was about to suggest that she actually had a bottle of wine in the fridge, when he got a call from his father and had to fly back to Inverness to take care of important matters, as he worded it. She hadn’t heard from him since; she answered the call and after several rounds of explaining and apologising, he invited her to a pub cinema that was showing Hitchcock’s Spellbound the next evening. She considered if he was lying, but somehow she knew he wasn’t so she said yes in the end.


	23. Day 23 - misery

It was a lazy Saturday morning, when the police knocked on her door. They were interrogating her about a certain Joshua Sanderson, alleged sexual predator, and when she - obviously - denied knowing anyone of such name, they showed her a mugshot of Mrs Jones’ grandson. As it turned out, the lady did indeed have a grandson, named Adam, whose accountant had reported some oddities in the family properties’ records. Sanderson was guilty of precursory data- and identity theft and the lead officer asked questions that implied she might be accused of aiding and abetting in his crimes. She explained that the first time he heard from or of “David” was before New Year’s Eve and the time he visited her in the flat, and that he actually knew where everything was and genuinely seemed like he knew the place. The officers recorded everything she said and asked her not to leave the country until further notice. When they left, she sat down and buried her face in her hands. How did she always stumble upon such miseries, she didn’t know.


	24. Day 24 - defiance

She was summoned to court about the Sanderson case; as it turned out, he modified the content of the tenancy and forged her signature before handing it in for approval. She was so angry about the whole situation, she did not want to show up to court alone so she texted the first person that came to her mind upon receiving the summons. Alexander was eager to go with her, he picked her up the day of the trial and tried to ease her mood on the way. She was grateful for his presence, especially when he stood up during the trial to confirm her innocence and Sanderson’s abrupt appearance in her life. He did not care how the defence solicitor called for defiance as the judge seemed to listen. At the end of the day, when they announced the sentence, sixteen years in prison for several cases of forgery, identity theft and sexual assault - one of Sanderson’s victims did not survive -, it dawned on her how lucky she was; she hugged Alexander for comfort and the man held her tight, caressing her hair, whispering it’s over now.


	25. Day 25 - anticipation

She could still count on one hand the times she’s met Alexander, but could not count at all how many times she had to contain herself and not refer to him as Alec. Although she did ask him if he had a nickname and he indeed said his friends call him Alec, she knew if she did it just once, she couldn’t not think of him differently. Their relationship was mainly based on the fact that the man tried to woo her and that she found him utterly annoying but somehow still charming. He was tall, blond, and had the brightest eyes (she could not decide if they were green or hazel), dressed smart; he was witty and clever, and she couldn’t get him out of her head since the trial. They were supposed to meet later in the afternoon, and she felt an inexplicable anticipation, one she never knew before. Was she falling for him..? She wasn’t sure.


	26. Day 26 - companion

There were whispers among the interns; she had no idea what was going on, she was too busy thinking about how his role model casually said ‘hello, dear’ as he passed by her desk in the morning. If she wanted to be honest, whatever they were whispering about, it seemed kind of unimportant, as the interns freaked out about kind of everything - just like she did in her first days, but at least she dealt with it internally. They were after lunch when the tall blond arrived. She could’ve sworn she’d seen that face, but couldn’t recall where exactly. She caught an intern whispering ‘he’s going to be the new Doctor Who companion!’


	27. Day 27 - storm

It was a dark and stormy night. She woke up to the rumbling sounds of the thunder at 2 am and couldn’t fall back asleep. After a half an hour of tossing and turning, she just sighed and grabbed her phone, scrolling through her social media. Nothing new. It felt like the whole world had left her behind; her eyes grew wild at that thought, it was the first time since she moved to London that her depression was as much as starting to crawl back. She knew she shouldn’t let that happen. The first person to text that came to her mind was Alexander - who was she kidding, he never left… She composed the short message for ten minutes, and when she tapped on ‘send’, anxiety filled her mind. Maybe she shouldn’t have texted him saying she missed him at 3 am… he would think she was clingy… she squealed when his reply came. ‘Was about to text you… can’t sleep either? Should I come over?’ She wrote back one word. About twenty minutes later, the doorbell rang.


	28. Day 28 - wild

'You know what I have in mind?' she asked smiling, the smell of fresh coffee filled the room. It was the most natural thing to wake up in the early afternoon cuddled up to him, after having spent the night sleep-deprived and the morning talking about nothing until they both drifted off.  
'I don't know, do I? Does it have anything to do with Harry Potter?' he said with a grin, referring to her half-asleep monologue about the Marauders at six in the morning.  
'I mean, it does, but it doesn't, but again, it does… I.. I haven't seen a deer in a while' her face lit up.   
'Is that so? Richmond Park it is, then, love, that's the heart of London's wildlife' he didn't realise what he had just said and she didn't point it out as she was too busy babbling about Prongs.


	29. Day 29 - duality

Mrs Jones was keen on Alexander moving in, especially after she told her everything that had happened at the trial. Several months have passed since that late night text, and by the time she approached the lady with the idea, the man literally lived there already. On a warm and sunny May evening, as she got home from work, Alexander had already made dinner - grilled chicken with vegetables, goat cheese and homemade Worcestershire sauce, the dish they had on their first official dinner date. The domesticity of the moment made her beam with happiness.  
'You should marry me next month' Alexander blurted out and she almost choked on her cider.   
'Excuse me?'  
'You totally should marry me next month, that way you can apply for dual citizenship. That would be my birthday gift to you.'  
'And you just casually mention this because..?'   
'Because if I just gave you a ring, there would be a high chance of you freaking out and saying no' he shrugged. 'I do have the ring at the ready though.'  
'You are a madman, you know that, right?'   
'So I've been told' he shrugged again, like it was nothing.  
'Albeit you're not wrong.. About the I totally should part, I mean. So I guess that's a yes.'


	30. Day 30 - writing

She was sitting at her desk, scribbling down random words on her notepad; she was still processing the fact that she was going to marry Alexander in a few weeks. When her role model passed by her, he looked at her notes and flinched.  
'Am I seeing the words TARDIS and Doctor there, darling?'   
'I, uh.. I'm not busy at the moment, so..' she tried to explain but the man continued.   
'That sure looks like a script to me, sweetheart. May I? If you don't mind, of course' he held out his hand and she gave him the notepad. He was reading through the text once, twice, then looked her in the eyes with a serious face. 'I don't know if it means anything to you, but I like it. Very much. You could be a great writer if you weren't wasting your precious time behind this desk. How are you planning to end the story?'   
'Well, I thought of it as a double, so this one would end in a cliffhanger and the next one would pick up where she leaves him behind, then I would bring back an old species, not sure which one though, and she would have a chance to save him while the two species confront.. But I'm not doing Daleks or Cybermen, so I'm kind of stuck here.'  
'Autons' he says naturally 'or Zygons, both would work well, given how he seems to fall for every trick, those two both have theirs to work with. But who am I to interfere with your writing anyway?' She was speechless for a second, then  
'You, Sir, are the main reason I'm writing this in the first place! And if it means anything to me that you like it? Are you kidding me? If I weren't so anxious about actually having a conversation with you, I would probably cry right now.'  
'Oh, we wouldn't want you to do that. Come by my room later today, would you?'   
'Yes, Sir' she nodded and stared at him walk away, still processing what just happened.


End file.
